The Mihrişah Sultan Complex () is a ''

külliye A külliye ( ota, كلية) is a complex of buildings associated with Turkish architecture centered on a mosque and managed within a single institution, often based on a waqf (charitable foundation) and composed of a madrasa, a Dar al-Shifa ("c ...

'' ( Ottoman charitable foundation) founded by Mihrişah Sultan in the late 18th century. The complex is located next to the

Eyüp Sultan Mosque The Eyüp Sultan Mosque ( tr, Eyüp Sultan Camii) is in the Eyüp district of Istanbul, outside the city walls and near the Golden Horn. On a much older site, the present building dates from the beginning of the 19th century. The mosque complex ...

complex in

Istanbul Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

. The complex's largest component is an ''

imaret Imaret, sometimes also known as a ''darüzziyafe'', is one of a few names used to identify the public soup kitchens built throughout the Ottoman Empire from the 14th to the 19th centuries. These public kitchens were often part of a larger complex ...

'' (

soup kitchen A soup kitchen, food kitchen, or meal center, is a place where food is offered to the hungry usually for free or sometimes at a below-market price (such as via coin donations upon visiting). Frequently located in lower-income neighborhoods, soup ...

) which is notable for being one of the last ''imaret''s in Istanbul to still serve its original purpose. The rest of the complex is also notable for the founder's mausoleum and for its ornate street-facing '' sebil'', all built in the

Ottoman Baroque Ottoman Baroque architecture was a period in Ottoman architecture in the 18th century and early 19th century which was influenced by European Baroque architecture. Preceded by the changes of the Tulip Period, the style marked a significant departu ...

style.

Description

Construction of the complex took place between 1792 and 1796 and was commissioned by Mihrişah Sultan, the mother of Sultan

Selim III Selim III ( ota, سليم ثالث, Selim-i sâlis; tr, III. Selim; was the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1789 to 1807. Regarded as an enlightened ruler, the Janissaries eventually deposed and imprisoned him, and placed his cousin Musta ...

. The complex is located next to the Eyüp Sultan Mosque in the

Eyüp Eyüp () or Eyüpsultan is a district of the city of Istanbul, Turkey. The district extends from the Golden Horn all the way to the shore of the Black Sea. Eyüp is also the name of a prominent neighborhood and former village in the district, lo ...

neighbourhood of Istanbul. Selim III's reign (1789–1807) saw renewed Ottoman dynastic interest in this area, as he was responsible for rebuilding the Eyüp Sultan Mosque between 1798 and 1800. His mother's complex consists of a large ''imaret'' (soup kitchen) and a '' mektep'' (primary school), but from the street its most visible elements are a ''sebil'' and her mausoleum. This urban configuration was similar to the earlier Hamidiye Complex (partly demolished today) in the

Eminönü Eminönü is a predominantly commercial waterfront area of Istanbul within the Fatih district near the confluence of the Golden Horn with the southern entrance of the Bosphorus strait and the Sea of Marmara. It is connected to Karaköy (historic G ...

neighbourhood, which was commissioned by Selim III's predecessor Abdülhamid I. The façade of the Mihrişah Sultan complex, with its vibrantly Baroque sebil and tomb, is one of the most notable exterior façade designs in Ottoman Baroque architecture and one of the grandest Ottoman charitable complexes from this period. File:Mihrisah Sultan Complex Eyup DSCF7740.jpg, The mausoleum, located at the southwest corner of the complex File:Grave of Mihrişah Sultan.jpg, The cenotaph of Mihrişah Sultan inside the mausoleum File:Mihrisah Sultan Complex Eyup DSCF7829.jpg, The sebil File:Mihrisah Sultan Complex Eyup DSCF9711.jpg, The Imaret building, seen from the courtyard of the complex

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* * * * {{coord, 41, 02, 54.8, N, 28, 56, 4.9, W, type:landmark, display=title Eyüp Ottoman architecture in Istanbul 1796 establishments in the Ottoman Empire Mausoleums in Turkey Ottoman Baroque architecture